By allowing ads to appear on this site, you support the local businesses who, in turn, support great local journalism.

Drew and Kelly Cecil set to co-head coach North Forsyth volleyball

Married couple built winning program at Pikeville High School in Kentucky

Forsyth County News

Michael Foster

Updated:
March 24, 2016, 6:39 p.m.

North Forsyth will have two new head coaches for its volleyball program, starting in the summer, and they happen to be husband and wife.

Drew and Kelly Cecil, currently of Brevard County, Fla., met with players and parents on Wednesday in a meet-and-greet shortly after accepting the positions as co-head coaches for the team. They'll move from their current school district to Forsyth County over the summer and prepare to take North's program to the next level.

North finished last season 19-13, but just 3-8 in region play under head coach Joy Stewart.

“We're really excited,” Drew Cecil said. “We really appreciate (Nathan) Turner and the principal at North for giving us this opportunity. We believe the sky's the limit at that school and we're going to work to make sure it's a program to be proud of on and off the court.”

The Cecil's have coached together before. They were co-head coaches for Pikeville High School in Pikeville, Ky., from 2010 to 2014. Kelly, raised in Florida, took a scholarship offer to play volleyball at the University of Pikeville, where she competed from 2006-10. After her varsity career was over, she immediately took the job at the local high school and talked Drew into tagging along.

Drew worked as a staffer for the program, while his step-Dad was an assistant coach and recruiter.

“We have always joked that he recruited more than just a volleyball player,” Kelly said. The two married in the summer of 2011.

At Pikeville High, the two compiled a record of 122-57-1 in five seasons.

Drew and Kelly both agree their leadership will feel like a family affair.

“We complement eachother really well,” Drew said of his wife. “A lot of things I feel like I might be stronger in, but there's things she's stronger in. We balance eachother out.”

“It works out perfectly because I've got the volleyball background as a player, but Drew is so good with numbers, stats organizing schedules and things like that,” Kelly said. “He will see things I don't see during play. He grew up around the sport. And we're so competitive, it's a good thing we don't go against eachother.”

The Cecil's wanted to find a home between Kelly's home in Florida and Drew's in Kentucky, and naturally found Forsyth County as a perfect fit. After hearing about a job fair at West Forsyth, they visited the area, met the North administration and quickly fell for the school.

“The school district, the morale among the teachers and administrators is about as good as it gets. I feel like it's a world-class district and we kind of fell in love with it,” Drew said.